Battery Powered Heart
by The Windmill of the Sun
Summary: He thought things would be better after he'd gotten rid of his suits and defeated the Mandarin. He thought that he'd be able to be with Pepper and that one day they would even settle down and get married. That was his plan, anyway. Post-Iron Man 3 oneshot. Minimal spoilers for the movie. Steve/Tony / Stony


**Notes: This is a post-Iron Man 3 fic, but I've placed it in the Avengers category, because there's no separate category for Iron Man in movies. Plus, don't you worry because this is not spoiler-ish whatsoever.**

**A/N: My second Steve/Tony fic, and my first collaboration to boot. I guess I can't actually dedicate this to my Tony since she owns half the words here, but I'd like to express my gratitude to her. Stay awesome.**

**And to you, dear reader, I hope you enjoy reading.**

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He thought things would be better after he'd gotten rid of his suits and defeated the Mandarin. He thought that he'd be able to be with Pepper and that one day they would even settle down and get married. That was his plan, anyways. Everything changed when she left shortly after Christmas. They argued constantly until Pepper broke up with him saying she couldn't handle it anymore. Not long after, she moved into a small house with Happy in New York, not far away from Stark Tower.

Tony had moved back into the tower with the other Avengers after. For the most part he kept to himself and stayed down in his lab to suffer with his frequent panic attacks in solitude. Every now and then, Steve Rogers would come down to the lab with a sandwich and a bottle of water and would set the meal down by Tony before he would leave. He was always friendly with the brunette, and his wide grin would drive Tony crazy and he'd always try to smile back.

On New Year's Eve, Steve had managed to convince the brunette to come up to the living room to count down to midnight with the others. Steve had stayed next to him for most of the night and had sat closer then he would normally, but it wasn't like Tony minded. At midnight he found out why the man had been sitting so close since he whispered his name to get his attention and kissed him as soon as Tony turned to look at him. They had started dating after that even though Tony still spent most of his time hidden in his lab. He started having more panic attacks as he worried that Steve would just be another person to leave him behind and that the man was too good to have someone like Tony as a partner.

Tony never let Steve see him have a panic attack. He didn't want to appear weak to him even though he'd already shown weakness by drowning himself in alcohol constantly. One night, Tony caught Steve staring into the hollow of his chest where the arc reactor was. He had it removed because he wanted Pepper to know that she wasn't dating a machine - the arc reactor was his battery. He'd still flinch when Steve tried putting his hand over it, even while they were sleeping, then he'd slip out of bed to go down to the lab to tinker and calm himself down. Once he completed a suit, he'd dismantle it in fear that Steve might react the way his former love did. Steve, on the other hand, was not Pepper. He accepted it because it was a part of him, and that he was still part of the Avengers. He said the team wouldn't be complete without Iron Man by his side to fly him up to places he couldn't reach. Steve was always there to tell him everything was going to be okay, and that he wouldn't leave him. Tony had his doubts.

Most of the time it didn't even feel like they were dating and Tony was constantly pushing his boyfriend away so he could be left alone. He was scared to get too attached to the blond with the constant fear that he would just leave once they got close. What made Tony feel worse was that Steve would always try in their relationship, feeling Steve's arms around him and pressing into his back at night while they slept. Some nights Tony would turn around to face him and bury his face in his chest to cry himself to sleep, realizing over and over how terrible of a boyfriend he was and sometimes he'd even mumble his apologies into Steve's shirt. He'd tell Steve almost every night that he should just leave since he deserved someone better than Tony, but he would refuse and tell that he would never give up on him. He loved Tony, even with everything that he was going through at the time, and he was determined to help him get past this and move on with his life.

* * *

It was Steve's turn to have nightmares. He reached over for Tony's side of the bed and found empty space. He told himself it didn't matter, Tony had it worse. The next morning he didn't find the man next to him, so he resigned to the gym to ruin a few punching bags. When he returned to the main floor, he made Tony some food and went down to the lab.

Tony sighed inwardly as he finished another suit. He had done most of the work last night for it after he woke up with another panic attack. He sat down on the couch and put his head in his hands as he leaned forward. He'd dismantle the suit later on, "For Pepper," he thought and shook his head. Everything he did now was for Steve, Pepper had moved on, so why couldn't he? He looked up when he heard the man typing in his security key and offered a small smile as he walked in. "You're up," he noted and stood up to greet the man.

"And you're still awake." Steve said almost sarcastically as he walked in. He placed the sandwich and bottle of water on the table. "I see you've been busy." He noted since it was a different suit from what he'd seen before. When Steve walked over to him, Tony buried his face in the broad chest in front of him and drowned in his scent. The blond didn't have to say anything. The silence comforted him; being held by strong arms even more. Then they'd exchange kisses. Steve didn't tell Tony about his nightmares. He'd just watch Tony eat.

Tony looked over towards the suit he made as he ate to avoid the man's gaze. He looked over towards him after he finished his sandwich and drank from his water. "Thanks," he said quietly before he stood up to kiss Steve carefully on the forehead and then stepped away. "I'll um, take care of that in a little bit." he said as he pointed back towards the suit since he didn't want to upset the man with his hobby like he had with Pepper.

"Take care of it?" Steve asked curiously. Tony watched as the man went next to it and looked it over. "Is this not finished yet?" He asked completely clueless when it came to his boyfriend's tech. Tony bit his lip and shook his head.

"No, it's done, I just..." He trailed off still avoiding his blue eyes.

"You just?" The brunette turned away from his boyfriend when he came closer. "Tony? You'll have to explain, you know how it takes a while for me to understand these things."

Tony swallowed and refused to look at the man when he felt him beside him once more. "I-" Did he really not know? "When I finish a suit, I… destroy it." He explained while he ran a hand through his hair.

"Destroy it? Why, why would you destroy your suits, Tony?" Steve asked and tried to get the smaller man to look at him by stepping directly in front of him. "Tony, please. Tell me why," he begged and pressed his forehead against his boyfriends gently. "So you won't leave me." Tony answered quietly.

Steve blinked in surprise and shook his head gently against his forehead. "I told you before, it's alright. If this is how you get your mind off things, then I don't mind it at all."

Tony brought his gaze up to look at him but he found himself averting his eyes. "B-but this is why Pepper left me..." His voice shook. _Oh no, Steve is sighing._ Tony swallowed the lump that formed in his throat. _He's going to leave me, too…_

"But I'm not Pepper."

Tony finally looked up at his boyfriend to meet his eyes, his vision blurry from his forming tears. "No, you're not," he agreed and shook his head slightly. "I would have done everything for her; I _did_ everything for her!" He said as rubbed the area on his chest where his reactor used to be. "And she left me, I-I don't want that to happen with you... I can't lose you, too!" He said as he let the tears fall down his cheeks.

Steve offered him a sad smile and shook his head. Tony tried to clear his throat, but only a loud sob came out when Steve placed his hands on either side of his face and found himself melting when he felt soft lips crash against his. "You finally stopped."

Tony sniffed and buried his face in his boyfriend's chest as they pulled away from the kiss. Steve smiled once more at the Tony's actions and rested his chin on top of his head gently. "Don't stop making your suits. I'm not upset about them, and I promise I won't leave you for them, either." He said sincerely.

Tony shifted slightly against his chest to look back up at him and he wiped his eyes with his hands. "I just, really needed to head that..." He said with a sad smile.

That night, Tony was able to sleep peacefully in his bed with Steve next to him.

His nightmares lessened, but he continued making the suits. He started having breakfast with the others in the kitchen and smiled as Steve would have a cup of coffee already made for him. Tony was starting to fall more and more in love with his boyfriend as they spent more time together. They watched movies to catch Steve up on the time that he lost from the ice. Tony would take him out on dinner dates often. He taught Steve how to dance. At the end of the day, they cuddled on the couch. The sex was great, too, but Steve would never admit it. Tony was having his Malibu mansion reconstructed and ask Steve to move in with him when it was finished, but Stark Tower- the Avengers Tower was always going to be their home. It was where they found love.

When Steve was around, he could see the brighter side of everything. He realized that he didn't have to worry. He had Captain America.

* * *

"Steve?"

"Yes, Tony?"

"I'm not dreaming, right?"

"No, you're not."

"...you won't leave, right?"

"I won't."

"...okay. I'll be here in the morning."

"Promise?"

"...promise."

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**A/N: Thanks for reading. Please review 'u'**


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